Risk assessment

Factsheet 11: Microplastics in wastewater treatment - Development of sampling and analysis methods for detection of input quantities into surface waters

It is not easy to determine how much microplastic is contained in wastewater and sewage sludge. In addition to plastic, countless other particles and substances are present. To reliably determine the concentration of microplastic particles, complex procedures for sampling as well as for removal of foreign substances and analysis of the microplastic particles are required.

Read more about Factsheet 11: Microplastics in wastewater treatment - Development of sampling and analysis methods for detection of input quantities into surface waters

Workshop on cross-cutting topic 2 "Evaluation methods of possible effects of plastics in the environment (incl. toxicology)"

Read more about Workshop on cross-cutting topic 2 "Evaluation methods of possible effects of plastics in the environment (incl. toxicology)"

PLAWES

Microplastic Contamination in the Weser- Wadden Sea – National Park Model System: an Ecosystem-Wide Approach

September 2017

April 2021

In PLAWES, the modelling system of the German national park Weser-Wadden Sea was the first large European river basin that was investigated in detail regarding its microplastic pollution.

Read more about PLAWES

Website

http://www.bayceer.uni-bayreuth.de/PLAWES/en/

Project sheet

18_Projektblatt_PLAWES_ENG_2018.pdf

MikroPlaTas

Microplastics in Dams and Reservoirs: Sedimentation, Spread, Effects

January 2018

September 2021

The spread of microplastics in rivers showed that along a given waterway there are sources as well as sinks. Thus, dams and reservoirs constitute important but until now hardly investigated parts of a water system that serve as examples for risk vs. usefulness of sedimentation of microplastics.

Read more about MikroPlaTas

Website

https://www.uni-muenster.de/Mikroplatas/en/index.html

Project sheet

16_Projektblatt_MicroPlaTas_ENG_2018.pdf

KuWert

Ship-Based Treatment of Plastics for the Implementation of Value Chains in Less Developed Countries as well as for the Prevention of Plastic Inputs into the Environment and Especially in Marine Ecosystems

August 2017

December 2019

The aim of the project was to develop concepts and preliminary planning for the implementation of an infrastructure for the collection, ship-based treatment, and marketing of plastic waste in order to reduce the input of plastic waste into the environment and marine ecosystems. The project's target regions were primarily less developed countries in the Global South.

Read more about KuWert

Website

http://www.KuWert.hs-bremen.de

Project sheet

13_Projektblatt_KUWERT_ENG_2018.pdf

SubμTrack

Tracking of (Sub)Microplastics of Different Identities - Innovative Analysis Tools for Toxicological and Process-engineering Evaluation

September 2017

June 2021

The methods currently available for the analysis of microplastics in environmental matrices were primarily designed for particles in the size range of 1 μm to 5 mm. Smaller particles below 1 μm were hardly detected. However in contrast to larger particles, these are able to enter cells and have a higher potential for adsorption of pollutants due to their relatively larger surface.